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This publication attempts to bring together recent information and the
technology of traditional milk products in developing countries.

It is based on two sources of information:

Contributions by 6 authors from the different regions of
developing countries.

Responses to questionnaires circulated by FAO to one hundred
countries in 1987 and 1988.

The following authors prepared manuscripts relating to the technology
of traditional products in their respective regions:

Aneja, R.P. - India and neighbouring countries

Bekele, E. - Ethiopia and Mali

Brito, C. - Southcone countries of Latin America

Kronflleh, A.R. and Laban, L. - Middle East - Syria

Kurwijila, L.R. - Southern and Eastern Africa

Nembang, L.B. - Nepal and Bhutan

Their contributions were collated by R.J.M. Crawford (Scotland),
edited by staff members of the Meat and Dairy Service of FAO and constitute
Part A.

The replies to the questionnaires were edited and grouped as set out
in Part B of this publication by P. Coppé, APO, Meat and Dairy Service of
FAO. It must be stressed that the replies to the questionnaires were not
always complete and that it was not possible for FAO to check the accuracy
of certain details. This section must, therefore, be viewed as a first
attempt to provide up-to-date information on the technology of a comprehensive
range of traditional dairy products in developing countries. Future
studies will refine these data and FAO would welcome contributions from
readers on specific products or groups of products to assist in making the
data as comprehensive and accurate as possible.

Milk as a raw material. Traditional milk products are prepared from
milk from several species:- indigenous cattle and exotic dairy breeds,
buffalo, sheep, goats, yaks and camel. The role of the individual species
varies dramatically from region to region and within countries of the same
region.

The composition of milk of different species has important influences
on the yield of traditional milk products e.g. high fat-producing species
are of major importance in countries where ghee is an important product.

The availability of milk for the preparation of traditional milk
products depends not only on the total amount of milk produced in a country
but also on how much of the milk is dispatched to industrial dairy
factories and how much is retained by the milk producer for the direct use
of the household, or for the preparation of milk products for local sale,
or for use in calf rearing.

Countries with proportionally the highest quantities of milk being
used for preparation of traditional milk products on the producer's farm or
household, or local small processing units tend to have the less well
developed dairy industry. It should be recognised that factors such as the
standard of road and rail links between the milk-producing areas and the
urban areas is of importance in determining how milk is utilised. Animal
breeding and feeding pose major problems to the small milk producer where
traditional milk products are important and technical support services are
commonly absent or insufficient.

Milking conditions and hygiene. The general standard of hygiene
applied to milk production in developing countries is poor and as a result
the quality of milk is poor.

Thorough cleaning and disinfection of the utensils used for milk and
milk processing are essential for the production of good quality milk but
few of the small milk producers can practice modern methods of cleansing.
The practice of smoking milk vessels is common in eastern Africa and
appears to have value in disinfecting the utensils as well as contributing
a smoky flavour to milk products.

Hand milking is the almost universal practice in the countries
reviewed.

Some countries have introduced payment schemes intended to reward the
producer who supplies milk of good hygienic quality, but in general,
farmers have insufficient knowledge of, and skill in clean milk production.

It must be recognised that many of the small farmers produce milk
under exceedingly difficult climatic conditions.

Of major concern is the lack of veterinary control of milk-producing
animals in many countries which when linked with the direct use of raw milk
for milk products results in conditions which may cause milk-borne disease
and food poisoning or at least damage the reputation of traditional milk
products.

Prevention, or limitation of the spoilage of milk is based on boiling,
or on souring, simple condensing with sugar addition or immediate
processing into traditional milk products.

Level of processing. Preparation of traditional milk products is a
household operation in many of the developing dairy industries. In
southern and eastern Africa there is no record to show that milk processing
has ever been organised at the community level as is the case with the
processing of cereals.

Producer cooperatives are being formed in Africa and elsewhere. Dairy
cooperatives in India perform the procurement of milk of suitable quality
in a condition fit for processing. Milk is mostly produced in small
quantities of two to four litres by small and marginal farmers in
innumerable and widely scattered villages.

The proportion of milk retained on individual farms in the southcone
countries of Latin America ranges from ten per cent in the case of
Argentina - a dairy exporting country applying modern technology in its
industrial dairy sector - to eighty per cent in the case of Paraguay.
Small-scale manufacture of traditional products is of little importance in
Argentina whereas in Paraguay much of the individual's supply of milk
products is derived from traditional milk products made in small units.
Projects are being undertaken in several countries to improve small-scale
manufacture of traditional milk products but much more must be done
worldwide to strengthen the role of this important sector of the
agricultural industry. Traditional milk products produced on a small scale
are in most cases capable of being adapted to medium and large-scale
methods.

Technologies of the main categories of traditional milk products.
Information is provided on traditional milk products under four
categories:- fermented milks, butter and ghee, cheeses, and other
milk-based products. Fermentation of milk to control the growth of
spoilage bacteria and some forms of pathogens is the most common aspect of
technology in the preparation of traditional milk products. The use of
natural controlled fermentation is seen in the preparation of products such
as dahi in the Indian sub-continent, laban in Syria, irgo in Ethiopia and
other soured milk in southern and eastern Africa. These soured milks, as
well as being liquid milk products in their own right, are the basis for
the production of unsalted butter, ghee (or butteroil) and curd cheese in
the household, the local village processing unit or the industrial scale
dairy factory. Much of Africa has no tradition of cheesemaking based on
coagulation of casein. In the Indian sub-continent, organic acids are used
to precipitate milk proteins in the formation of the base material for
sweets. In the southcone countries of Latin America cheesemaking is an
important sector of the dairy industry and traditional cheese types based
on rennet coagulation of milk, and in most cases bearing a similarity to
European varieties, are made on a small-scale in farms and by modern
methods in dairy factories.

The use of heat to concentrate and preserve milk is practised widely
and is the basis of a wide range of traditional milk products, particularly
in the Indian sub-continent and Latin America.

Economic importance of traditional milk products. Livestock farming
in general and milk and milk products in particular play an important
socio-economic role in all of the countries reviewed. The extent of
dependence of the farmer on traditional milk products varies from country
to country and within countries. Climate, development of roads and
transport within a country, and the level of industrial milk processing are
some of the factors in determining how important these products are.

In addition to the actual value of the product to the farmer, the
country and the region, the importance of work in small-scale milk
processing in rural areas is stressed.

The agricultural industry is economically very important for all of
the countries reviewed and recommendations are made for policies which will
develop traditional dairy products in value and quality.

Nutritional importance of traditional milk products in the national
diet. The importance of traditional milk products in the diet is related
to the overall availability of milk to the population of each country, and
within a country to the consumption of milk and milk products in rural and
urban areas.

In many countries milk consumption is well below the requirement for a
balanced diet as recommended by FAO.

Since much of the preparation of traditional milk products takes place
in rural areas - many of them isolated by lack of transport - their
importance from a nutritional point of view is greater for the local
population than for that of the urban areas.

Nevertheless, traditional milk products such as butter and ghee and
milk protein-based foods contribute much of the dietary requirements of
national populations. Contributions examine the role of traditional milk
products in a country or regional context.

Organization of marketing. Traditional milk products reach the
consumer through many different marketing channels. In southern and
eastern Africa only a small fraction of the milk is marketed by commercial
enterprises and nearly all traditionally prepared milk products are
marketed through informal marketing channels. In many cases there is no
middleman between the producer and the consumer. Variations from this
simple procedure to sales to intermediaries of dairy cooperatives and
supermarkets exist in many countries. Marketing may also be undertaken by
government agencies. The state of marketing and sales is discussed in
relation to the future development of traditional milk products from
several viewpoints including the improvement in quality.

General discussion, summary and conclusions. There is general accord
that traditional milk products are of great importance to all of the
countries and regions surveyed. Not only when the products are prepared
and sold by empirical methods in a rural, semi-urban or urban location but
also where the scale and technology of production has moved on to the
industrial dairy sector and associated marketing and distribution practices
apply.

The characteristics and the technology which are described suggest
that in developing countries traditional milk products are made in general
under primitive conditions which result in low yields and also in poor
quality products. Suggestions for the development of traditional milk
products start with the need for improved veterinary control of cattle to
ensure a safe milk supply; programmes for improved hygiene practices for
milk production; establishment of village-based milk processing units;
improvements in processing equipment to achieve better efficiency and
product quality; training of milk producers and milk processors to develop
their knowledge and skills; technical support for this sector of livestock
farming.

Many contributions stress the need for national and international
policies which take account of the value and importance of the traditional
milk product sector of the dairy industry and recommend that this sector
should be taken account of in future policies as appropriate.